OAK RIDGE BOYS, BLACKWOOD BROTHERS, BEN SPEER HONORED
AS SOUTHERN GOSPEL MUSIC GUILD PRESENTS
2010 "HARMONY HONORS" IN NASHVILLE

Top Names & Legends of Gospel Music Gather for Unforgettable Event

 

Thursday, April 29, 2010

>> 2010 SGMG Harmony Honors photo slideshow - CLICK HERE <<

L-R: Joe Bonsall, William Lee Golden, Judy Nelon, Duane Allen and Richard Sterban. The Oak Ridge Boys are joined by SGMG president Judy Nelon backstage at Gaylord Opryland after being presented with the SGMG President's Honor. Photo by Aaron Crisler / The Judy Nelon Group

NASHVILLE, TENN. (April 26, 2010) — Nashville’s Gaylord Opryland Resort and Hotel was filled with praise and song as the legendary greats celebrated 100 years of Gospel Music with the 2010 Harmony Honors presented by the Southern Gospel Music Guild (SGMG) on Monday, April 19th.

Karen Peck and Kirk Sullivan hosted the celebration as the top names in southern gospel music lit the Gaylord Opryland stage including performances by the Blackwood Brothers, Ben Speer, Bowling Family, Crabb Revival, Gold City, Guy Penrod, Jason Crabb, Jeff & Sheri Easter, Karen Peck & New River, Kirk Sullivan, LeFevre Quartet, Nelons, Perrys, Tribute Quartet, Triumphant Quartet as well country music entertainers The Oak Ridge Boys.

The Oak Ridge Boys brought one of the evening’s highlights as they accepted the prestigious President’s Honor award, presented by SGMG president Judy Nelon in recognition of their long time ambassadorship of gospel music around the world. With the crowd on their feet, The Oak Ridge Boys delighted the enthusiastic audience with several of their most loved gospel songs including "Jesus Is Coming Soon."

“It was a great night all around for The Oak Ridge Boys. Not only did we get to share the stage with our Gospel friends and heroes but we were honored to receive The President’s Honor for our contributions to southern gospel over all of these years. We are grateful to Judy Nelon and to all at The Southern Gospel Music Guild for this honor.” - Joe Bonsall

Also honored were the Blackwood Brothers in recognition of the group’s 75th anniversary as a legendary presence in the southern gospel format. The President of the Gospel Music Association (GMA) Ed Leonard and SGMG president, Judy Nelon, made the presentation.

The Blackwood Brothers: Jimmy Blackwood, Wayne Little, Randy Byrd and Billy Blackwood lean in for a smooth blend at the SGMG Harmony Honors: 100 Years of Gospel Music Celebration where The Blackwood Brothers were honored for 75 years in gospel music. Photo by Aaron Crisler / The Judy Nelon Group

Another memorable highlight of this year’s concert presentation was the special recognition of the legendary industry accomplishments of Ben Speer, who performed to an overwhelming response from the audience.

Ben Speer discusses The Speer Family legacy of gospel music, which dates back to 1920, with SGMG president Judy Nelon, executive producer of the SGMG Harmony Honors: 100 Years of Gospel Music Celebration. Photo by Aaron Crisler / The Judy Nelon Group

"It has been said, 'When you are a fan of a country or gospel musician, then you are a fan for life.' In my case this has proven to be true. As a young girl in the early 50’s, I first discovered this music on the radio, as my sisters and I listened to the Blackwood Brothers coming from New York as winners of the “Arthur Godfrey Talent Scout” show. Along with millions of fans from around the world, our hearts were broken when we heard the news of the tragic airplane crash that took two of the lives of the Blackwood Brothers. My sisters and I learned to harmonize from those radio shows. The Speer Family had that same smooth four-part harmony we loved but they had girls in this group, which made it even better for us. In 1973, I was honored to recognize the success of the Oak Ridge Boys with a Gospel Music Award in Los Angeles, CA. Thirty-seven years later it is once again my honor to recognize the significant success of this same group: Joe, Richard, Duane and William Lee with the President’s Honor. Celebrating 100 Years of Gospel Music could not have been better than to witness such enormous success and history in the performances from legendary groups at the 2010 SGMG Harmony Honors." – Judy Nelon

The Monday evening SGMG event provided a tremendous early burst of “kick-off” energy to this year’s GMA 2010 Music events that concluded with the 41st Annual Dove Awards where The Oak Ridge Boys won another Dove for “A Gospel Journey” in the category Long Form Video.

>> 2010 SGMG Harmony Honors photo slideshow - CLICK HERE <<

ABOUT SGMG:
Leaders within the music industry wishing to foster the growth of this unique musical genre founded the Southern Gospel Music Guild in 1986. The Guild has today grown to include virtually every facet of the Southern Gospel music industry including artists, record labels, radio, promoters, publishers, distributors, talent management, media representation, and booking agencies. The stated goal of SGMG: With Jesus Christ as our cornerstone, to create a cooperative environment designed to encourage excellence, education, awareness and growth, while preserving the essence of Southern Gospel Music.
www.SGMG.org

ABOUT THE OAK RIDGE BOYS:
With numerous Gold and Platinum albums, The Oak Ridge Boys have also enjoyed more than a dozen Number One singles and over 30 Top Ten hits with over 30 million records sold throughout their illustrious career. With talents that have long been recognized by their peers, this Grammy Award winning group has also received eight Dove Awards, four ACM Awards, four CMA Awards and are members of the Gospel Music Hall of Fame. In 2009, the Oak Ridge Boys released their acclaimed new album, The Boys Are Back on SpringHill Records and they continue to perform live nationwide throughout the year.
www.OakRidgeBoys.com

ABOUT THE BLACKWOOD BROTHERS:
The Blackwood Brothers formed in 1934 in Mississippi with brothers Doyle Blackwood, James Blackwood, Roy Blackwood and his son, R.W. Blackwood. In June 1954, the Blackwood Brothers Quartet appeared on the "Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts" radio and television show and won the competition with their stirring rendition of "The Man Upstairs." Two weeks after this appearance, two of the Blackwood Brothers, R. W. Blackwood and Bill Lyles, were killed in a plane crash in Clanton, Alabama. The surviving Blackwoods regrouped adding R.W.'s younger brother, Cecil, to sing baritone and J. D. Sumner, singing bass.  In 1956, James Blackwood, Cecil Blackwood and J. D. Sumner organized the first National Quartet Convention, which still exists today and is held in Louisville, KY. A replica of their bus, the first customized tour bus in history, is on display in the Southern Gospel Music Hall Of Fame at Dollywood. The Blackwood Brothers have recorded over 200 albums and toured in 47 countries. They won eight Grammy Awards and 6 Dove Awards. They were inducted in the "Gospel Music Hall of Fame" in Nashville, TN in 1998. James Blackwood was nominated for a Grammy Award thirty-one different years. The Gospel Music Association's Dove Award, seven times for top male vocalist. In 2003 "We Called Him Mr. Gospel Music: The James Blackwood Tribute Album," won a Grammy.  Today James Blackwood's sons Jimmy and Billy continue the legacy of The Blackwood Brothers. 
www.BlackwoodBrothers.com

ABOUT BEN SPEER:
Ben Speer, who made his performance debut in gospel music at the age of 2, spent most of the 20th century as lead singer of the Speer Family, one of the most influential groups in the history of gospel music. The Speer Family success began while they performed for the James D. Vaughn Music Company in Lawrenceburg, TN the birthplace of gospel music. They recorded over 75 Speer Family albums and were the first group to record Bill Gaither’s “The King Is Coming,” which became Ben’s signature song. He enjoyed a further piece of music history when asked to sing on Elvis Presley’s first RCA recording session in Nashville. His contributions to gospel music are ongoing to a new generation through The Ben Speer Stamps-Baxter School of Music. As musical director of Bill Gaither’s “Homecoming” videos, Ben Speer is credited as an indispensable part of the Gaither Music family. He is deservedly a member of both the Gospel Music Association Hall of Fame and the Southern Gospel Music Association Hall of Fame.
www.BenSpeerMusic.com

The Oak Ridge Boys: Joe Bonsall, Duane Allen, William Lee Golden, Richard Sterban were honored at awards show produced by Judy Spencer Nelon in 1973

The Blackwood Brothers Quartet - 1970 James Blackwood surrounded by his quartet members: Clockwise from bottom left: Peter Kaups, Billy Blackwood, Bill Shaw, Cecil Blackwood, Jimmy Blackwood, London Parris, Larry Davis and Dwayne Friend

The Speer Family - 1958 Clockwise from left: Mom Speer, Brock Speer, Dad Speer, Ben Speer, Ginger Smith

>> 2010 SGMG Harmony Honors photo slideshow - CLICK HERE <<